By William Selmah, wselmah@gmail.com
The Association of Evangelicals of Liberia (AEL) is continuing its COVID-19 response to dozens of communities in Monrovia, suburban and rural communities in Montserrado, Bong and Rivercess Counties.
The Executive Director of AEL, Rev. James Cooper says they are mainly involved with the distribution of fliers originally produced by the Ministry of Health, National Public Health Institute of Liberia and the World Health Organization.
He said since the announcement of the first case of COVID-19 in Liberia, the AEL has been endeavoring to intervene in some communities as a way of ensuring it is one of the first respondents, taking cue from the Ebola virus disease five years ago.
“We therefore taught to engage our partners to empower us to help protect communities in which we are operating across the country. We therefore
We contacted Tearfund Canada, Tearfund UK, and Mission Alliance and shared with them our experience from the Ebola crisis and what needed to be done”, Rev. Cooper explained.
By the end of March, we had reproduced and distributed several fliers in the Fehn River Community in Rivercess County, where we are working with 15 districts and helping some 300 farmers with advanced knowledge in food and cash crop production”, Cooper explained.
The cleric added that they also collaborated with the County Health Team and gave them some of the items they carried as a way of boosting their own work in the county.
“By the end of March, we had reproduced and distributed several fliers and distributed them in the Fen River Community in Rivercess County, where we are working with 15 districts and helping some 300 farmers with advanced knowledge in food and cash crop production”, Cooper explained.
300 households in total were reached with detergents, buckets, soap and other sanitation materials and fliers, in Rivercess in an exercise that is expected to benefit at least 1800 persons.
Some of AEL’s project areas is Bong County, which was a key focus of the outreach activities.
The cleric further said that with funds from Mission Alliance, their partners in Norway they wre able to reach out to three districts in Bong County (Zoeta, Jorquelleh and Panta)
“In those districts we engaged 52 communities, and trained groups in each of them to be able to carry out awareness in those areas on hand washing, social distancing, what to do when observing unusual feelings, and what to do during emergencies”.
In each of the 52 communities, buckets were given to be placed at the entrances of each them for hand washing for those entering and exiting. They were educated as well as well on constant hand washing.
Cooper: “As we did during the Ebola, we also encouraged them to use locally made materials like reeds to store water in them”
The AEL boss also said his organization’s intervention in Montserrado County focused on vulnerable persons providing food and non-food items,and that they are contemplating provision of safe and clean water to in the county as well.
“Clean and safe water is crucial in the fight against COVID-19,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Association of Evangelicals (AEL) has distributed food and non-food items targeting 144 vulnerable persons in Montserrado.
According to the organization’s Sexual and Gender Based Violence Officer, Weedor Watson, Tearfund is the sponsor of the exercise which is benefiting 18 communities in Montserrado.
The items include rice, oil, beans and sanitary materials to combat COVID- 19.
Madam Watson said the distribution also targeted SGBV victims.
In addition of the distribution, Madam Watson said they will also be carrying out COVID-19awareness.